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Chicago White Sox (30-34) – John Danks +144, N/L O/U at Chicago Cubs (30-30) – Carlos Zambrano -154, N/L O/U, Wrigley Field, Chicago, Ill., 8:05 PM EST, Tuesday
by Badger of Predictem.com
As if the flames between the White Sox and Cubs rivalry needed to be stoked any more, White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen threw a log on the fire yesterday when he told reporters “I puke every time I go to Wrigley.”
This should be a great series!
The Cubs and White Sox renew the battle for Chicago with the start of an interleague series tonight at Wrigley, and with resident hothead and ace Carlos Zambrano going for the Cubs against the out-spoken Guillen, how could this game not have some fireworks?
Lefty John Danks goes for the White Sox as they look to continue a solid road trip that started with two wins over the Milwaukee Brewers last weekend.
Oddsmakers list Zambrano and the Cubs as low as -154 favorites on the moneyline, although you will find a few offshore sportsbooks listing him as high as -160 to -165 too. Shop around and find a dimeline sportsbook to give you the best underdog odds, like the +144 the White Sox are listed at 5Dimes.
The over/under total is still currently off the board at press time, most likely due to the wind situation at Wrigley.
Zambrano has been good his last two starts since coming off of a suspension, going 14.2 innings allowing just five hits and one run with seven walks. In nine career starts against the White Sox he is 5-2 with a 4.45 ERA, so he’s going to be reliable no doubt. Since he’s just coming off of a suspension you have to believe he’ll be on his best behavior tonight, but Ozzie and Z could get into some theater on the field that may take him out of his game.
Whether or not the Cubs are able to back Zambrano tonight is another story. The Cubs have only scored nine runs in the past five games and as a result have lost four of the five and are hovering around .500 still. The good news is the Cubs are 7-3 in the games started by Zambrano this season.
Danks could be the solution to the Cubs offensive woes if he keeps pitching the way he has been of late, giving up 20 hits, 11 runs and six walks in his last three starts. I will give him some credit though, his last start versus Detroit was solid (7.1 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 2 R), but that has been the exception lately.
The White Sox and Guillen will once again have to figure out a way to get Jim Thome’s bat into the lineup, playing with the National League rules at Wrigley. The Sox averaged over 4 runs per game in the series at Miller Park, but they still only scored 14 total in the series and really seemed to miss Thome’s bat in the middle of the lineup.
Both teams swept their homestand’s in this interleague series last year, which means the Cubs took all three at Wrigley by a 22-to-11 scoring margin. Danks threw in that series at Wrigley last year and threw very well (6 IP, 5 H, 1 R), only to have the bullpen blow it late in a 3-2 loss.
The White Sox are 1-6 in their last seven visits to Wrigley, which may explain why Guillen pukes there so often. The White Sox are 4-9 overall in the last 13 games between the city rivals.
The over is a solid trend here too, as it is not only 6-2 in the last eight games in the series at Wrigley, but the over is also 5-2-1 in Zambrano’s last eight starts against the White Sox.
Badger’s Pick: I like Zambrano to continue to dominate tonight, but at -154 you’re starting to reach the limit of how much juice I’m willing to eat. That’s right on the edge. With no total available, I can’t go the easy route and take the over, even if it opens at 10 runs, I’d still take it. If your bankroll can afford the chalk tonight, take the Cubs at -154.
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